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Sophia Journal

Theoretical Papers

Vol. 10 No. 1 (2025): Landscapes of Repair: The Role of Photography and Film in Documenting the Legacy of Modern and Contemporary Architecture and Public Spaces

Scaffolding Styles: Aesthetics of Iron Construction

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Abstract

The landscape that offers the city is unfinished and uncertain. It is full of temporary structures serving restorations, repairs, or new permanent and static works. The purpose of these construction elements is not their own aesthetic, theoretical, or functional value, but to evoke the value of something else — that which is to come. However, even though these elements are intended to be nothing more than a transient presence, they inevitably transform the city and its aesthetics. It is common to treat these elements with contempt and to devalue them because of their temporariness. This article aims to explore the aesthetic condition of temporary metal structures by examining the philosophical debate that took place during the nineteenth century on the use of steel in architecture. These discussions, together with photographs taken between the 1920s and 1930s of permanent industrial metal structures, were fundamental in establishing a new vision and aesthetic of industrial landscapes.

Cover Image: Pont Transbordeur (1905) and Harbor of Marseilles. Archiv S. Giedion, Institut fur Geschichte und Theorie der Architektur, ETH - Honggerberg, Zurich.

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